Pork Carnitas - Mexican "Little Meats"

Taken on an HTC One M8

I've just become a dad for the first time and I know that what I cook and certainly the way I cook will have to change. Sheerly because of the lack of time I now have it will put huge constraints on how I feed my new family, especially after my paternity leave ends and I once again return to the 9-5

Before my wife went into hospital I decided to stockpile a few freezer meals for when we arrived back home with our bundle of joy and black hole of free time. The obligatory ragout, the beef chilli, a stack of pulled pork portions, all staple meals that can be defrosted in the microwave and cooked up, quite literally, single handed. 

I knew that by having these on hand, should time be of the essence, I could knock something up (no pun intended) in no time at all and still eat well between the endless cycle of feeding, sterilising, changing, rocking and burping my little girl. 

I already had a chunk of pork shoulder in the freezer (purchased for a quarter of the price from the reduced aisle) and I knew I wanted to try and make a few meals for the freezer. I had a look around the usual recipe sites and Pinterest and came across Carnitas. 

Carnitas is like a Mexican pulled pork without the barbecue sauce. It translates as little meats and is used in tacos, sandwiches, burgers & salads and it tastes incredible. So I defrosted the pork and got to work. 

The ingredients are pretty straightforward. Pork shoulder, an orange, 1 tsp of cumin, 2 tsp of oregano, an onion, 5 garlic cloves  and oil. I threw in a few extra ingredients of my own so here it goes. 

Firstly, it's a good idea to get bit of browning on the pork so cut the skin off (set this aside to make some crackling by flattening it on a baking tray, oil and season it and pop it in the oven on the bottom shelf until crispy), cut the shoulder into 3 large pieces and roll in seasoned flour. Hard fry the pork on all sides and put it in a casserole pot with a very roughly chopped onion. 

In a pestle and mortar, grind the oregano and cumin with a little rock salt and fennel seeds, add 5 garlic cloves and a good glug of olive oil and sunflower oil. The recipes I read said to add the juice of an orange but I had the dregs a fresh orange juice carton in the fridge so I used that instead. Pour this mixture into the hot frying pan to deglaze it then into the crock pot. It may look a little dry at this stage so you can add water or chicken stock a but no more than half a pint as when the pork cooks it will release water and be too wet at the end stage. 

Pop the lidded pot in the oven on the highest heat for 30 minutes then turn down to 180c for 2 and a half hours. If after 2 hours it looks a little too wet, remove the lid for the last 30 minutes. 

Pour into a deep tray or plastic container (when cooled slightly) and fork apart to get a pulled pork style finish. 

Once cold I separated it into amounts of 200g, wrapped it up in cling-film and froze it in a resealable freezer bag for when I need it.

As and when you're in the mood for a mexican treat, just defrost it, fry it up in a small frying pan until dry & crispy and serve on a toasted wrap with avocado, and pickles. 

HINT: It's a good idea to toast the tortillas on the bare hob as it adds a smokey charred taste and it crispens them up a treat

Enough carnitas for at least 7 meals from a £5 piece of pork.

Money saving meals at its best.

In the picture above I used fried broccoli, hot sauce and lime to improve the wife's iron levels.

Roast Pork Belly with Bubble & Squeak Fritters

Canon Rebel

This is a Monday night meal without a doubt because there’s nothing simpler than roasting a pork belly and mixing some bubble and squeak together. It’s just what you need after a long day at work. It’s also a Monday meal because you have to use the left over veg from your Sunday lunch the day before. What you need is a very short list of ingredients, some left over veg, floury potatoes, a slab of pork belly and about 2 and a half hours.

Crackling on pork belly has been my arch nemesis for such a long time and I’ve tried so many methods (and I mean so many, probably about 14 ways) to get it crispy but only two of them worked. The problem with a square of pork belly is that when you put it in the oven the skin contracts and corners fold up so all the fat pools in the middle and it doesn’t crisp up. I’ve found if you roll the pork belly and tie it with sting it allows the fat to run off down the furrows of slashed skin. You need to make sure that the skin is open so the heat can get to it so you need to pour a kettle full of boiling water over the top which contracts the skin and shows the fat underneath. Now, moisture is the enemy of crackling so you need to dry it out, the best way I could think of was a hairdryer and it works a treat. When the skin is dry, rub with olive oil and generously dust with table salt and Maldon salt then roast in a really hot oven for 25 minutes until the fire alarm starts to go off. Turn the heat down to 170C, open a window and set the timer for 2 hours. If, after 2 hours, it's not completely crispy then you can turn the grill to full and keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn. The skin will bubble up and go crispy and you're done.

You usually see a big pan of bubble and squeak but it’s a lot more palatable in small fritters and they’re a doddle to make. Peel and cut your floury potatoes into medium sized chunks and boil until cooked. Mash with butter, milk and a good amount of seasoning, add your chopped up vegetables and thoroughly mix, shape into patties (helps if you have one of these) and set aside on a floured plate so they don’t stick to it.

When the pork is done, remove the skin (and eat a little bit) then wrap the pork in foil and set aside until you need it then simply slice into thick wedges. Fry your bubble and squeak patties in some olive oil until golden brown. Throw together some Bisto, water and apple sauce for a quick fruity gravy and that’s you done.  An absolute taste sensation for about £3 a serving, amazing.